My finch enclosure build

[InkMinx]

So here is my work in progress. The enclosure is wood on two sides and toughened glass the other two, There are 2 fans in the roof for air circulation. 2 UV lights for plant growth as although its by a window, its north facing so no direct sunlight. The bottom drawer slides out for easy cleaning and refilling of food bowls. The end pillar also comes away so the glass panels can be fully removed for cleaning. Water feature went in today and i have put the felt pockets up for the 'plant wall' which will hopefully be planted up next week, along with perches being added.

[InkMinx]

Sorry no idea why most of the photos are sideways!

[GouldianGuy]

really neat! love the idea of being able to remove the glass to clean! Are those sliding glass doors for daily access?

[InkMinx]

They can be for daily access as the front ones slide and overlap. Although most of the daily stuff will be done using the drawer at the bottom.

Also the wallpaper is a bit on the lumpy bumpy side as I used PVA to apply it instead of wallpaper paste which I was unsure about the toxicity of.

[Madcat]

WOW!!!!! I'm amazed at the talent in this forum. Good stuff InkMinx

[Babs _Owner]

InkMinx

I'm worried about the danger of the fan blades. Are they covered? If not, you may have to staple window screening over them.

[GouldianGuy]

InkMinx

I'm worried about the danger of the fan blades. Are they covered? If not, you may have to staple window screening over them.

Agree

[Shannylee]

InkMinx, nice!! I do agree with the concern about the fan blades. After a traumatic loss of a bird to a ceiling fan, I am very careful when it comes to anything spinning. Birds can get themselves into some interesting predicaments. Now, when I clean my porch bird cages, I make sure that the door is closed and the fans are off. :/

[w.l.]

The whole thing looks poorly suited to finches to me.
Poor ventillation, nowhere on the sides to hang onto...
And those inside fans look both risky and possibly creating unwelcome, strong mini winds inside.
This looks more like a terrarium for reptiles.

[InkMinx]

It was made by a company that make the enclosures for birds specifically. The fans are like CPU fans so not creating a strong wind or hard (you can stop them with your fingers without hurting yourself) but I may put some mash on to be in the safe side.

I thought with finches they didn't tend to climb on the sides of cages, that was more of a parrot thing? Although the planted back wall provides a load of climbing/hiding space.

[Babs _Owner]

InkMinx

Finches do often fly and cling to the sides of a cage . Especially when spooked they often misjudge the perches and fly past them. The planted wall may be a nice solution for that. I've seen aviary pictures showing glass enclosures and they look lovely.

I think the glass makes some of us nervous, not only because of ventilation , but also when a finch flies into the side of the cage their feet reflexively grab the bars and they can stop them selves. On a smooth surface (like a wall or glass ) finches just bonk into it and slide down. Most of us have witnessed this when one of our finches gets out and hits a room wall or window. I have a blind finch from such an accident. Some of us have had fatalities from wall & glass collisions .

However, people have made glass enclosures that work well. Maybe someone on the forum who has such an enclosure can chime in and give advice.

About the fan, your finger is stronger than a finches head, or legs or even wings. ;)

And the lights too. If they can create enough heat to burn a finch they would need to be covered as well. ;) Or may I suggest some LED strip lighting as they give off no heat and do come in full spectrum and would give you more full coverage lighting for the bird's health and for the plants. Plus you'd really see the color of your finches "pop" in that type of lighting.

I love the whole look of it (especially imagining the plant wall). Just helping you troubleshoot dangers before the finches are introduced.

[InkMinx]

I really appreciate the guidance on this one. I must admit I did wonder how you could have glass for a bird enclosure as surely they would fly into it. But did a bunch of research on it first and seems to not be an issue. I will stick a load of post is notes all over the glass when I first introduce the birds so that they learn there is boundary there.

So I have got the planted wall done and the two main perches in place. One more branch to go in lower down in the middle Its just cooling from being oven baked first.

The lighting needs changing, with the perches in place they are in the way, and one of them is an LED grow light but the light it goes of is purple and looks horrible! Im going to opt for a T5 strip light instead tucked under the pelmet right at the front so its not in their way.

With the plant wall in place it does encroach on flying space, so Im thinking I may need to lower bird numbers from 6 to 4 would like views on this.

I have also attached mesh over the fans.

More pics with the glass off.

[Babs _Owner]

InkMinx

Training them with the post-it notes and gradually taking them down sounds like an excellent idea.

The fan looks better, just trim up the sides so their talons dont get caught up in it.

It looks absolutely gorgeous. I only use faux greenery so I can't give you advice on the safety of the plant species (they will bite and tug at them). Im sure you did your homework on that already.

What are the dimensions? If you trim back the foliage you may still be able to have the 6 finches, if the space is at least 30in wide. There are lots of places for the finches to go to if someone gets on another's nerves.

What species are you introducing?

[w.l.]

Typically bird vitrins I know would only have glass at the front, something solid at the back, and wire mesh for ventillation on the sides or at least partly so.
As birds usuallly try to fly away from people, they are unlikely to fly against the front glass in panic.

Your finished enclosure looks very beautiful, though I'd still be inclined to think it is for reptiles!
Unfortunately, in my personal experience live plants don't fare well with finches.
They get peppered with droppings and many finch species will laborously destroy them, too.
This does depend on the size of the place, the species and numbers kept in it though.
In your place a pair of tiny waxbills like cordon bleus might be the best bet.

[InkMinx]

Thanks. Will continue to fiddle with the fan cover.
The enclosure is 4ft x 2ft And Im looking at Owls, Cordon bleu's, Gouldians, Red bellied fire finches mainly, so hopefully placid species.

I did plant research, which I much admit was rather tricky as a lot of conflicting info on what is and isn't safe. I have over planted it a bit, as I figure some wont hold up to the rigours of birds so I can always redistribute where needed!